1. Technical Field
This invention relates generally to desktop chargers, and more particularly to a desktop charger having a moveable connector module so as to accommodate different electronic devices with different form factors.
2. Background Art
Cellular phones are becoming more and more popular. Advances in technology have made phones smaller and more affordable. Often, to sign customers to annual contracts, cellular service providers will actually give away cellular phones. As a result, while cellular telephones were once only used by the wealthy, they are becoming commonplace across all sectors of society.
Cellular phones come in all shapes and sizes. Even within one manufacturer's product line, each cellular phone may have its own unique size and shape. For example, the Razr V3, V600, V220, V180 and MPx220 phones manufactured by Motorola each have unique shapes and sizes. The Razr V3 is only 0.54 inches thick, while the V600, V220, V180 and MPx220 are 0.9, 0.95, 1, and 0.96 inches thick, respectively.
To further complicate matters, the batteries that these phones use can come in a variety of shapes and sizes. One particular phone may be capable of using both a small battery with limited energy storage capacity and a bigger, more bulky battery that has a higher energy storage capacity.
All of these devices, however, rely on batteries for their portability. These batteries, regardless of type, must eventually be recharged. They can be charged in a number of ways. Some phone manufacturers sell power supplies that can be connected by a wire to the phone. People often prefer, however, to have a charger that can be placed on a table or desk. Companies therefore sell chargers that are designed to sit atop a desk and hold a phone while charging. The charger generally has a pocket into which the phone is inserted. Sometimes, the charger will have a second pocked for charging a spare battery.
The pockets must be capable of providing mechanical support for the phone and/or battery. In the case of a phone, the phone typically sits in an easily viewable, upright position that allows it to receive incoming calls. A problem arises in that manufacturers prefer to have a single charger that can accommodate an entire product line over designing and manufacturing custom chargers for each phone.
As such, chargers, in order to be versatile, must accommodate different phones with different shapes and sizes. One way to accommodate different phones is to provide a charger with a pocket large enough to receive the largest phone. Using this scheme, when a smaller phone is placed in the pocket, neither the phone nor the battery is supported by the plastic of the charger. Instead, the phone uses the charger's interlocking connector as a support mechanism. When the phone connector mates with the charger connector, the charger connector itself is responsible for providing the mechanical support. This scheme is illustrated in U.S. design Pat. No. D394,423. The problem with this scheme is that the connectors are generally not robust mechanical supports. They sometimes break, rendering the charger useless.
There is therefore a need for a charger with means for supporting a phone that accommodates a variety of phone form factors.